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Monday, July 26, 2010

ORLANDO, Fla. (ABP) -- A group of women and men calling themselves the Freedom for Christian Women Coalition has demanded an apology for religious teaching they say is harmful to women. Shirley Taylor, founder of Baptist Women for Equality, presented the Demand for an Apology from the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood at a July 24 meeting in Orlando, FL.... http://www.abpnews.com/content/view/5370/53

Pastor and founder of Hungry Hearts Ministries, Jocelyn Andersen is the author of, Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence, For more information about all her books, visit her author page at amazon.com/author/jocelynandersen

Dr. J Ligon Duncan III
Chairman of the Board of the CBMBW
First Presbyterian Church
1390 North State Street
Jackson, MS 39202

The Freedom for Christian Women Coalition met on July 24, 2010, in Orlando, Florida, and agreed and affirmed this Demand for an Apology from the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood because of the concerns as listed in the following pages.

For the sake of all Christians, men and women, we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood, make a public apology for the misuse of Holy Scripture as it relates to women, and cease to publish or promote The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood.

DEMAND FOR AN APOLOGY FROM THE COUNCIL ON BIBLICAL MANHOOD AND BIBLICAL WOMANHOOD

At a time in our church history that the main focus should be on winning lost souls and spreading the gospel to a hurting world, we fear for the future because the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood has placed a greater priority on women’s submissive role rather than on the gospel of Jesus Christ.

It is with that thought in mind that we make these statements.

1. We are concerned that men are being taught that they are god-like in their relationship to women within the church and home. As the mothers, wives, and daughters of these men, it is our concern that this doctrine is setting them up for failure as Christian fathers, husbands and sons;

2. we are concerned about the sin that evangelical church leaders commit when they deny the love of Christ fully to women simply because they were born female;

3. we are concerned about the damage this causes to families when husbands and fathers are told that they have Headship over their wives and daughters;

4. we are concerned about wife abuse, girlfriend abuse, and abuse to female children that takes place in many homes where evangelical men are taught that they have earthly and spiritual authority over women;

5. we are concerned that the children who attend churches that subscribe to the principles of The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood will grow up not knowing the full redemptive power of the blood of Jesus for both men and women;

6. we are concerned for the mental and emotional development of girls and boys who attend churches that teach males have superiority over females;

7. we are concerned that men who are taught that they have Male Headship over a home and church do not feel that they are accountable for abusive attitudes and actions towards women;

8. we are concerned about the mistranslation of the scriptures by complementarian translation committees and by the false teachings propagated by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood;

9. we are concerned that pastors who teach and preach male domination/female subordination cannot relate in a loving, Christ-like manner to female members of their congregations because they have already judged them and found them lacking;

10. we are concerned that the issue of wifely submission, promoted so heavily by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, is more about power and control than about love or obeying the Word of God.

It is because of these concerns that:

1. We demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood acknowledge the harm that has been done to the church body by The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood, confess it as sin, and denounce it;

2. we demand that denominational leaders and all churches and seminaries which have adopted The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood do the same;

3. we demand a public apology from the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood, and from all heads of seminaries and Bible colleges that have adopted The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood, for the inestimable damage this statement has done to all Christians whose lives have been influenced by it;

4. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood begin to promote the Biblical design of functional equality for all Christians, both men and women;

5. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood begin to speak out against pastors who continue to demean women and oppress Christians by the use of The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood;

6. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood chastise pastors who claim that abuse of women is acceptable and justified because the wife is not submitting to the husband;

7. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood make known to every boy and every girl who attend an evangelical church, that God is their head, and that authority over another human being can come only from God;

8. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood teach men that they share equally in the burden of society’s ills, and that all that is wrong with society today cannot be blamed on women;

9. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood do everything in their power to teach seminarians to show the love of Christ to both men and women;

10. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood teach pastors to be loving towards those Christian men and women who disagree with The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood;

11. and, finally, for the sake of all Christians, men and women, we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood, make a public apology for the misuse of Holy Scripture as it relates to women, and cease to publish or promote The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood.

Pastor and founder of Hungry Hearts Ministries, Jocelyn Andersen is the author of, Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence, For more information about all her books, visit her author page at amazon.com/author/jocelynandersen

Pastor and founder of Hungry Hearts Ministries, Jocelyn Andersen is the author of, Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence, For more information about all her books, visit her author page at amazon.com/author/jocelynandersen

Monday, July 05, 2010

As a formerly battered Christian wife who is alive only by supernatural intervention ( you can read about that in the first chapter of my book which is posted at www.WomanSubmit.com ), it is my profound belief (backed up by studies and statistics) that strongly held attitudes of male supremacy are largely responsible for domestic violence. That is why I work so hard to raise awareness of both issues within the Christian community.

Registration is still open for the Seneca Falls 2 Evangelical Women's Rights Convention to be held in Orlando in a few weeks. It is a free conference. Please come and bring some friends if you can. ~~jocelyn

Pastor and founder of Hungry Hearts Ministries, Jocelyn Andersen is the author of, Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence, For more information about all her books, visit her author page at amazon.com/author/jocelynandersen

Thursday, July 01, 2010

What is Woman this is War! about? Woman this is WAR! is about change. Women are second class citizens in most churches and many homes. This is not only un-Christian and un-Biblical but it is emotionally and spiritually detrimental to all involved, and sometimes physically dangerous to women and girls.

Can you elaborate on that statement? How can it be healthy and beneficial when evangelical leaders call men who love their families but have no desire to rule over their wives, "wimps?" And harmful prejudice against women is encouraged when Christians are taught that the underlying motive in the heart of every woman is to dominate men. Studies are showing that aggression and violence is increasing in young boys as well as college age young men and it is being connected with strongly held beliefs about gender roles. Sadly, the evangelical church is the primary propagator of this harmful paradigm. Complementarian teachings are often interfering in otherwise happy marriages and creating problems where previously there were none. The Church is pitting husbands and wives against each other. This must stop.

You sound like a feminist; isn't feminism opposed to Christianity and Biblical teaching? The definition of feminism has evolved over the years but at its most basic is simply "advocating for social and political equality for women."

The earliest definitions of the word were derogatory, and it is the fact that Webster's Dictionary first defined feminism as "the 'cult' of advocating for social and political equality for women" that is largely responsible for the stigma still attached to the word today. Language unarguably plays a large part in defining cultural attitudes.

There is no evidence that Christian feminism can be connected with secular feminism in any way. It is not a spin-off. Anti-feminist author Mary Kassian admits this in her book, The Feminist Mistake. It is a sad fact that evangelical historians and authors have ignored and even grossly misrepresented significant Christian initiatives in the many movements for women's rights. Committed Christians, both women and men, have been instigators in the various movements for women's rights from the very beginning. For instance, four of the five women who organized the Seneca Falls Woman's Rights Convention in 1848, were Quakers. Christian involvement in women's rights spans oceans and continents and can be traced to the 17th century. The first feminist is said to be a Christian. I write about her in my book too.

Christian women have a rich heritage in advocating for equality of the sexes; and it is a heritage we should be proud of.

What about women in the Church? The complementarian teaching that men should lead and women should follow cannot be substantiated with scripture. This teaching actually comes out of paganism. There are no scriptural prohibitions against women teaching or leading in either the Old Testament or the New. In Woman this is WAR! I cover this question in a great deal of detail.

Your title accuses the church of aligning itself with caste and slavery in regards to women; how can this be justified? Because it is true. Many evangelicals teach that women are born to subordination for the simple fact that they are born female. Complementarians teach that there is nothing a woman can do to rise above the fact of her birth. This is caste. As far as slavery is concerned, many of the arguments used to keep women in subjection are identical to the arguments used by slaveholders in attempts to prove that slavery was divinely mandated by God. I recently spoke with a young complementarian who still believes slavery was mandated by God and was beneficial to the slave in many ways! Unbelievable! In the book, I draw many parallels between the attitudes of 19th century slaveholders and those of 21st century traditional role religionists and complementarians.

It sounds like you cover a great deal of historical background in your book: Yes, Woman this is WAR! is a treasure trove of historical information relevant to the issue and should be of interest to anyone researching not only the Christian aspects of the history of women's rights but also Black History. Some prominent figures in the movement for women's rights were former slaves, and also, some prominent African Americans who played a large part in freedoms so many enjoy today were devout Christians.

Pastor and founder of Hungry Hearts Ministries, Jocelyn Andersen is the author of, Woman Submit! Christians & Domestic Violence, For more information about all her books, visit her author page at amazon.com/author/jocelynandersen